New Zealand Wars (1840s–1870s)

Here is a list of when and where the major New Zealand Wars took place:

• The Northern War (1845–1846)

• The Wairau Affray (1843)

• War in Wellington and Whanganui (1845–1847)

• War in Taranaki (1860–1861 & 1864–1866)

• War in Tauranga (1864)

• War in the Waikato (1863–1865)

• The East Coast Wars (1865–1866)

• Pai Mārire and the West Coast Campaigns (1864–1866)

• The Story of Tītokowaru (1868–1869)

• The Story of Te Kooti (1868–1872)

General websites

These New Zealand websites are the best place to find the most reliable information on the New Zealand Wars.

Te Ara: The Encyclopedia of New Zealand

Te Ara is an excellent starting point for all questions about Aotearoa New Zealand. If we look down to the bottom of the page, we can see that the website belongs to the Ministry for Culture & Heritage, so the information is well-researched and reliable.

• Go to Stories A-Z.

• Chose the letter N.

• Select New Zealand wars.

• In addition to a chapter on each war, you will find some information on the long-term impact of the wars, as well as some external links and other sources.

Tips: Many web pages have links to further information or to other recommended sites. Following these links is a great way to find out more.

NZ History

NZ History is a great website for information about Aotearoa New Zealand. If we go all the way down the page we can see that the website belongs to the Ministry for Culture & Heritage, so the information is well-researched and reliable.

• Look for the section on New Zealand at War from the home page.

• The heading New Zealand's internal wars has links to the regional wars and other important conflicts and movements relating to the New Zealand Wars such as The Wairau incident, Te Kooti's war, Tītokowaru's war, and Pai Mārire.

Tips: A website’s address (URL) can give you a hint about how reliable it is. Look for addresses in the results that include .govt or .edu in the URL. These are quality sites from government or educational organisations.

New Zealand Wars

This website about the New Zealand Wars belongs to Danny Keenan, a Māori writer and historian (expert in history). It offers a Māori view on the wars fought between Māori and the Crown.

• Explore links such as Timelines, Causes, Consequences, NZ Wars Maps to understand more about the wars.

• The link Wars Without End explains how the impact of the New Zealand Wars on Māori is still felt today.

Tips: Websites that have .com or .co in the address can have good information, but you need to assess how reliable it is. The paragraph at the top of the page tells you why this website has been written. Also check Danny Keenan's Published Works to find a link to Writing this site which is about the author and what went into writing this site.

DigitalNZ

DigitalNZ is a search site that focuses on New Zealand history and brings together results from lots of different New Zealand libraries, museums, universities and government websites all at once.

• Type the search words 'New Zealand Wars' into the search box.

• The results are grouped by type of information, like images, videos, newspapers, articles and research papers.

• Select Videos to watch the five-part series The New Zealand Wars presented by New Zealand historian James Belich.

Tips: Websites that have .org or .net in the address can have good information, but you need to assess how reliable it is. Check the About us link on the website, if you can find one. That can tell you what the organisation’s mission and values are.

Dictionary of New Zealand Biography

This website, which is part of Te Ara: The Encyclopedia of New Zealand has over 3,000 biographies of New Zealanders including Māori and Pākehā leaders of the New Zealand Wars.

• Enter the names of Māori leaders of the New Zealand War into the search bar eg Te Kooti, Riwha Tītokowaru, Rewi Maniopoto and Rua Kenana.

• Search for Pākehā leaders eg George Whitmore, Thomas McDonnell, Duncan Cameron and Gustavus von Tempsky.

Tips: DNZB belongs to the Ministry for Culture & Heritage, so the information is well-researched and reliable. The other thing to keep in mind is that DNZB does not include people who are alive.

Books

Your school library and local public library will have books about the New Zealand Wars. Here are some titles that we found:

• The New Zealand Wars by Philippa Werry.

• The New Zealand Wars by Ross Calman.

• The New Zealand Wars, 1820-1872 by Ian Knight and Raffaele Ruggeri.

• The land wars by Kevin Boon.

• Patu : the New Zealand wars by Gavin Bishop.

SCIS no: 1956773